Text messages could tell dog owners how their pooch is feeling

A new ‘smart collar’ has been designed to monitor the health and wellbeing of any dog that wears it. Using sensors that measure heart rate, temperature, breathing and activity, the collar can map a pet’s general health and even – the makers claim – its mood. All this information is then packaged up as a text message sent to the owner so they can monitor their pooch.

Such technology is already used by top athletes to measure body diagnostics, but this is one of the first times it has been used in pet care.

PetPace, which helped manufacture the device, claims it can accurately report on whether a dog is ill, hungry or even sad, dailymail.co.uk notes. This information can then be sent to the owner for them to take action. Effectively, this provides a way for dogs to accurately ‘converse’ with their owners with a good measure of accuracy.

Commenting on the product, chief veterinary scientist at PetPace, Dr Asaf Dagan, told mirror.co.uk just what it could achieve.

“This collar will enable pets, for the first time, to ‘tell’ us how they feel,” he said. “Most importantly, our smart collar will allow veterinarians to provide better medicine and better service to their patients while sealing the bond with pet owners.”

Dog owners wanting to buy the product for themselves will be able to from next year, with prices expected to be around £90.